The E for All expo has come back this year and I will be attending it! I’ve got 5 interviews lined up across the event. On top of that I’m going to cover the event and the games there. Expect many new videos in the coming week.

You too can attend the event at the Los Angeles Convention Center. It’s open to the public, which in my opinion is awesome!

The road to elite video gaming’s TEAM USA 2008 is now confirmed: The World Cyber Games (WCG) USA 2008 National Final will be held in at this year’s E for All Expo in Los Angeles, October 3 – 5, ,International Cyber Marketing (ICM) and IDG World Expo announced today. The WCG USA 2008 National Final at the E for All Expo will feature 200 of America’s very best players, all competing for the rare chance to make TEAM USA and represent the United States at the WCG 2008 Grand Final, to be held in Cologne, Germany, this November 5th – 9th. The WCG’s Grand Final is the culmination of the world’s largest video game tournament.

America’s top gamers will be the showcase tournament attraction at the 2008 E for All Expo, the premier consumer video game event, organized by IDG World Expo and scheduled to take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center October 3-5, 2008. The WCG USA 2008 National Final will fill more than 15,000 square feet of dedicated space on the E for All show floor. In addition to determining TEAM USA and national champions in 14 WCG “Official Game Titles” the WCG USA will include the Samsung Mobile Challenge tournament, a women’s gaming invitational tournament, an “old school” pinball competition, numerous walk-up video gaming contests and many more exciting attractions. Feature matches in some of the world’s most popular PC and Xbox 360 videogames will take place on a main stage complete with live play-by-play commentary keyed to the in-game action being projected on giant video screens. World Cyber Games’ partners Samsung Electronics, Microsoft Xbox 360 and Games For Windows, Phillips amBX, Dust-Off and several others will feature expo booths with interactive displays, product demonstrations and gaming kiosks in the WCG USA tournament area at E for All, creating a high-energy gaming and youth lifestyle festival for consumers. E for All attendees will have countless opportunities to walk away with merchandise prizes via giveaways and promotions in the WCG USA area during breaks in the tournament.

“E for All is the perfect stage for the World Cyber Games, providing attendees with a unique opportunity to see the who’s who of elite competitive gamers in-person as they show their mastery of today’s most popular video game titles,” said Mary Dolaher, Chief Executive Officer of IDG World Expo, the leading producer of world-class tradeshows and events around the globe. “Through our partnership with ICM, we’re not only establishing a home for the 2008 WCG USA National Final, we’re underscoring our support of the growing global eSports gaming community.”

“E For All has quickly established itself as a premiere video game event in the United States. This World Cyber Games USA National Final at E For All will immerse gaming fans and attendees into the ever-expanding genre of International eSports competition – this is the only place to see America’s best gamers, live and in person, battling for the treasured opportunity to represent the USA on competitive gaming’s most coveted stage, the World Cyber Games Grand Final this November in Cologne Germany.” said Michael Arzt, General Manager of WCG USA.

After this year’s miserable E3 fiasco, I’m so grateful to hear that E3 is returning to the Los Angeles Convention Center on July 15-18th, 2008. If E3 stayed in Santa Monica it would have surely died a horrible death. Even if booths will remain less about flashy showings and more about industry reflection, isn’t that a good thing? Being able to see and discuss video games with fellow developers will only help the industry.

The event is still closed to the public, but that’s why we have the new E For All Expo. If you’re still angry about E3 being closed off to the public first remember that it always was a private industry event and secondly read this post for more information why E3 cracked down.

If you need one more reason to attend this month’s E for All expo, here it is. I’ll not only be there – I’ll be a panelist on “I Made It!” We’ll be discussing how we broke into the video game industry, which will hopefully inspire our audience to figure out ways on how they too can break in. The conference will be held on Friday October 19, 2007 at 10:30AM-11:30AM.The best part about this convention is that it’s open to the public! Yes imagine E3 except ANYONE can come.